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Buyer - FMCG - International

Employer
WHSmith
Location
London Head Office, Houndsditch (with remote working available)
Salary
Competitive
Closing date
30 Oct 2021

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Sector
Retail
Hours
Full Time
Flexibility
Flexible working available
Contract Type
Permanent

Job Details

Buying forms the backbone of our business and is incredibly fast-paced. By identifying trends and understanding our on-going success stories, this team ensure what customers want is on our shelves. It takes a flair for relationship building, negotiation and an analytical approach. We look for people who can deliver a variety of strategies to help drive sales and profit and who have an affinity with what we sell.  

The international business is increasingly important to WHSmith and has grown to over 300 stores – mostly in international airports - in the last seven years. Our strategy is to significantly grow the profitability of the international business and, in addition to continuing to grow our store base, we see opportunities to deliver improved returns from our existing stores with better trading plans and enhanced gross margins.

We have an exciting opportunity for an experienced FMCG Buyer to join our talented International Buying team based in our Travel Head Office in Central London. You will work on some of the fastest growing categories in the business! You’ll be responsible for range rationalisation, delivering commercial income and facilitating an improved supply chain for the distribution of our FMCG ranges – so it really is a great time to join us. 

What you’ll do:
As a Buyer you’ll be accountable for many of the key FMCG categories across our main estate, enhancing our core WHSmith store offer and developing a best practice merchandising and buying strategy for local markets across Europe.  

Get it right and you can really make an impact. And that could catapult your career onto a whole new level. To succeed, you’ll need to inspire your team to deliver your trading goals. You’ll also need to analyse data and spot trends, whilst building strategic relationships with the biggest global brands in the industry to negotiate great deals. It takes a spark of imagination to come up with tomorrow’s best sellers. With commercial thinking and ingenuity, you’ll create new categories, ranges, appropriate pricing and sales-boosting strategies.  

Who we’re looking for
You will ideally be from a FMCG Retail buying background, with previous FMCG buying experience. With your expertise you’ll drive the growth of this category holding accountability for revenue, sales, margin and income. 

We’re looking for someone who is creative, but also commercial, with a head for figures, as this area’s data-driven. Knowledge of Profit & Loss and supplier management is essential. Our FMCG category has grown significantly over the past few years, therefore you’ll need to have an entrepreneurial mindset and be looking for a role that has the scope to develop and make a real impact. If you’re analytical, calm and articulate, you could be the ideal fit. 

What’s in it for you? 
You’ll be at of the hub of an incredibly fast-moving function and you’ll be trusted to make decisions that benefit the business. It’s a serious responsibility – which will seriously motivate you. You’ll thrive on the freedom and the chance to use your skills and will be supported with plenty of training and development opportunities. What’s more, you can expect some fab rewards, including an achievable annual bonus, 25 days’ holiday (and the option to buy more), private medical insurance and a car allowance. Plus, a competitive pension, the perks of your birthday off and an early finish on Fridays, and lots more! Our London Head Office is only a five minute walk from Liverpool Street station and close to lots of shops.

About us
You may know we operate on the high street, in rail and bus stations, airports, hospitals, universities and workplaces. But did you know we’ve been around since 1792 and have over 14,000 employees across the globe and have consistently outperformed other major retailers over the past ten years. We continue to grow by putting our customers first and have a strong culture of innovation and entrepreneurialism. At WHSmith we love progressing our people, so there are No Limits to where your career can go! 

Company

WHSmith started in 1792 with a small news vendor in Little Grosvenor Street, London, followed by the opening of our first bookstall in Euston Station in 1848. We quickly established ourselves as the favoured newsagent, stationers and bookseller opening stores across the UK. From this point on, there has been no looking back.

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